With MAN OF STEEL exploding onto screens this weekend and already breaking records, it's impossible not to wonder where the Superman franchise - and other DC properties which might be destined for the big screen - might be headed.

David Goyer offers some insight into this matter in a set of recent interviews.

Zack [Snyder] has said that Bruce Wayne exists in this universe. It would be a different Bruce Wayne from Chris’ [Nolan] Dark Knight trilogy, and it would be disingenuous to say that Zack and I haven’t had various conversations on set, around ‘what if’ and ‘moving forward’.

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Warner Bros has hopes that there will be more Man Of Steel films, and that this will be the beginning of a shared universe. We could meet Batman, or Wonder Woman, or the Justice League in these movies. But they all hinge on box office reception.

Over at DenOfGeek, Goyer expands upon what kind of Luthor we might see should another MoS movie evolve.

Previous depictions of Lex Luthor on film depict him as a bit bumbling. Even though Gene Hackman's depiction was fun, we've indicated with Lexcorps that you can infer that Lex in this world is more a Bill Gates or Rupert Murdoch like character. He's probably a multi, multi billionaire. He's not a crook.

I won't give anything specific away here, but I will say that MAN OF STEEL is seeded with at least one overt and one rather subtle shout-out to the possibilities mentioned above. So, they were indeed thinking ahead, as Goyer indicates. As this weekend will clearly determine so much about when, or if, or how we'll see further DC universe on the big screen, it'll be fascinating to see how MoS performs - which already looks hugely promising given current numbers.